AUK update
I am on my second planting. I planted a lot of seeds the first time in each, and it ended up looking like a jungle (I grew basil, mint and cilantro).
This time around, I decided to be more careful with the number of seeds, I only put 8 in each pot and things seem more manageable this time around. I planted arugula instead of mint, and it grows SO quickly, need to harvest it a bit so the distance of the light can be similar for all the plants.
I used coco coir brick and rehydrated it instead of reordering from AUK, and it works well, except that a thin layer of white has appeared on the surface. I read that I can use a hydrogen peroxide solution spray to address that.
In one of the pots, I used regular coco peat to experiment (not the brick, but it is coarse and thicker than the rehydrated version - see leftmost pot) and it worked out just fine!
I told myself that if my AUK works well for at least two harvests, I will look into a larger system. I am now seriously considering Vertical Oasis, I saw their demo system at an indoor nursery during the peak of winter, and it seems to work well.
Would love to hear what others have grown successfully in their AUKs, and any success stories of vertical garden systems.